Daniel Boyd was accused Thursday of planning to attack a Marine base in Quantico, Va. Two others were arrested on charges of plotting separate bomb attacks.

September 25, 2009

By David MonteroCorrespondent

Police arrested two men in separate incidents Thursday on charges of plotting bomb attacks in Springfield, Ill., and Dallas, and charged a third with planning to attack a US Marine base – all on the same day Afghan immigrant Najibullah Zazi was charged with planning one of the most serious bomb attacks on American soil since 9/11.

The rapid succession of arrests and charges underscores the continuing threat of domestic terrorism.

Authorities in Texas arrested a Jordanian man, Maher Husein Smadi, and charged him with planning to blow up an office building in Dallas. Police had put Mr. Smadi under surveillance, and an undercover FBI agent had given him a fake car bomb, according to the prosecutor.

Police in Illinois charged Michael Finton with plotting to blow up a courthouse in Springfield, the state capital. According to government officials, he could face a life sentence if convicted.

The FBI had a drug informant become friendly with Finton, according to the complaint. The informant told agents that Finton had talked about wanting to get terror training and to fight in Gaza against the Israelis. Agents then worked to set up an "opportunity for action that we controlled," began recording encounters with him and put him in touch with an undercover agent who told Finton he was an Al Qaeda operative.

Meanwhile, the FBI also issued a new indictment against Daniel Boyd, an American convert to extremist Islam who had already been charged with planning to “wage holy war overseas.” The new charge accused him of planning to attack a US Marine base in Quantico, Va., according to CNN. It also charges him with “possession of weapons in furtherance of a crime of violence [and] of providing a rifle and ammunition to a convicted felon.”

When Zazi returned to Denver he voluntarily submitted to questioning and, according to law enforcement sources, admitted to receiving training at an Al Qaeda camp in Pakistan, where his wife and children live.

Zazi maintains his innocence and has denied any involvement in a terrorist plot.